A tribute to the legend Ghantasala in Coimbatore

Art enthusiasts in the city have a reason to rejoice. Bharatanatyam exponent Kalaimamani Parvathi Ravi Ghantasala, daughter-in-law of the legendary musician, the late Padma Shri Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao is all set to pay a tribute to the renowned musician in namma Coimbatore.
“It was my son Mohinder’s idea that we start celebrating his birth anniversary. When we were discussing the honour before the launch, the only thought was that there are legends. And we need to invite and honour them. We instituted the Kala Pradarshini Puraskar to honour the doyens of art fraternity who have contributed a lot in their respective fields. We started with his 95th birthday last year in Chennai and legends like SP Balasubramaniam, Padma Subramaniam and Nallikuppusmay Chetti were honoured at the event. The 96th anniversary tribute was celebrated at Hyderabad and had performances by Vyjayanthimala Bali, Saroja Vaidyanathan, CV Chandrasekhar, Shobha Naidu, the Dhananjayans and Leela Samson. The songs were compiled by popular music director Saluri Vasu Rao. I performed our signature pieces along with my students. We have just wrapped up this year’s event and are planning to do the next tribute in Coimbatore. We would like to invite teachers and performers in Coimbatore as well. I always ensure that I rope in local talent.”

When quizzed the reason behind choosing Coimbatore, Parvathi says, “I have performed here a number of times and have seen many Telugu-speaking people here. I want them to enjoy the old songs of Ghantasala garu in a new way. We have taken 40-year-old songs and adapted it in a way that would appeal to this generation. The multimedia, costumes, lightning and colours are an added delight, making the concert a visual treat. As a daughter-in-law, I want to carry forward his legacy.”

Ghantasala’s music has played a crucial role in Parvathi’s dance journey as well. “I have been performing for his songs and taking them to places. For this tribute, I chose the best of his songs as I cannot afford to do all his works. They had to be traditional. There are nice songs from his films that speak volumes of philosophy but the challenge is adapting them to dance. When these legends ask me what songs they should be performing at the tribute, there are some interesting discussions. All these dancers are extremely humble and down-to-earth to an artist who is younger to them. They willingly came forward to perform and thoroughly enjoyed the day. That’s sheer bliss.”

Parvathi has been performing for the last 40 years but she says that she enjoys teaching more these days. “Of late, I have started enjoying teaching than performing. Through teaching, I am able to bring out many themes and convert them into big productions so that many girls can participate in the dance ballets and showcase their talent. Back home in Chennai, almost every kid in my locality is my student. I focus on underprivileged children and go to corporation schools and teach them. Even if they get a little support, they can go a long way. Some of my students have also started teaching now.”

But at the same time, Parvathi admits that teaching is a huge challenge. “First of all, to take all these old songs and teach them to young kids is a great task. They need to understand the meaning of the songs. Some of them might be extremely talented, while some slow learners. You have to make them all perform on stage at the same time. My wish is that all my students do well.”